


Bespectacled Romance

by AdrianaLoud1996



Category: The Loud House (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-16
Updated: 2017-04-16
Packaged: 2018-10-19 19:33:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 6,985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10646583
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AdrianaLoud1996/pseuds/AdrianaLoud1996
Summary: Lisa starts having dreams about Clyde. When she talks to Lucy about it, she comes to the conclusion that Lisa is attracted to him. The solution? A date of course! Lisa X Clyde





	1. Lisa's Dream

It was a calm and peaceful morning in the Loud house. Everyone was either out and about or in their own rooms doing their own things. Lisa was sitting in the middle of the couch with a notepad doing complicated math problems for no reason other than for fun.

There was a knock at the door. Since she is the one closest to the door, she knew she had to answer it. She got up from the couch and answered the door. It was Clyde.

“Hey Lisa,” Clyde greeted.

“Greetings Clyde. Are you here to see Lincoln?” Lisa wonders.

“Actually no. I came to see someone else,” Clyde says.

“Please don't say Lori. She's far too preoccupied with texting Bobby to even notice your presence here,” Lisa warns in a deadpan tone.

“Nope, I didn't come here to see Lori either,” Clyde stated as he walked into the house and sat on the couch.

Lisa was stumped. Who else could Clyde possibly want to see besides his best friend Lincoln or his crush Lori? He wasn't closely linked to anybody else here. At least, not that Lisa is aware of. She closes the front door.

“Ok, I give up. Who are you here to see?” Lisa wonders. 

A grin appears on Clyde's face.

“I came here to see...you,” Clyde explained.

Lisa's eyes widened in surprise and she gave a quiet gasp.

“Me? Really?” Lisa whispered.

“Yes. Come sit next to me,” Clyde says as he places his hand on the couch.

Without any hesitation whatsoever, Lisa strolled to the couch and sat down. Clyde used both of his hands to grab Lisa's right hand. Lisa looked up at Clyde and gave him a sweet smile that she has never given before.

“Lisa?” Clyde whispers.

“Hmm?” Lisa responded, her gaze still resting on him.

“Can you do me a favor?” Clyde begs.

“Yes. Anything,” Lisa replied, her eyelids starting to droop.

“Wake up. Wake up Lisa. Come on, wake up…”


	2. Waking Up

Lisa was sleeping in her bed facing the wall when she felt someone shake her shoulder. Then she heard Lincoln's voice.

“Wake up. Wake up, Lisa. Come on, wake up,” Lincoln prodded.

Lisa opened her eyes and realized that Clyde's visit was just a dream. She rolled over and looked at Lincoln.

“What day of the week is it?” Lisa asks rather groggily.

“It's Saturday,” Lincoln answers.

“Then why are you waking me up? It's not like it's a school day,” Lisa protested.

“Dad's making pancakes. And if you don't hurry, they'll all be gone,” Lincoln replied happily.

Nearby, Lily starts to giggle and make babbling noises from her crib. Lincoln walks over to her and picks her up.

“See? Even Lily wants pancakes. Now let's go,” Lincoln pried as he walked out of the room.

After giving a quick yawn and rubbing her eyes, Lisa grabbed her glasses and put them over her eyes.

“I can't believe I had another dream about Clyde. It's been happening quite a lot lately,” Lisa quietly pondered.

She got out of bed and headed downstairs, knowing that she could just forget all about her dream involving Clyde.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Or so she thought. You see, the Louds started a very strange tradition that occurred every Saturday and Sunday morning. They should choose a sibling completely at random and whoever gets chosen has to discuss the dream they had the previous night. And wouldn't you know it, it was Lisa's turn.

She didn't want to discuss her dream about Clyde because she didn't want anybody to jump to the wrong conclusions. So while she got the pancakes from her father, Lisa tried to come up with a different dream that she could talk about. After everyone was settled into the dining room table eating their breakfast, Mr. and Mrs. Loud turned to Lisa.

“So, little girl genius, what was your dream last night?” Mr. Loud asked.

Suddenly Lisa's memory of the rendezvous with her big brother's best friend that occurred inside her head came flooding back to her. She had to think of something quick, as everyone was staring at her. 

“I didn't have a dream last night,” Lisa answered, praying that the lie sounded convincing.

“Ok then. If you didn't have a dream last night, that's completely fine,” Mrs. Loud says in a comforting tone.

Everyone continued to eat their breakfast. Lucy gives Lisa a silent stare from across the table. Lisa notices but since she can't read her goth sister's emotion, she simply shrugs and focuses on her food.


	3. Lisa's Confession

Later on, Lisa is in her bedroom using her chemicals to make some sort of unknown concoction.

“Lisa,” Lucy whispered, making Lisa yelp in fright. Lisa turned around and faced Lucy.

“You’ve gotta stop doing that. Now what can I do for you?” Lisa says.

“You lied to Mom and Dad this morning about not having a dream last night,” Lucy accused.

Lisa put her hands on her hips and gave Lucy a cold look.

“That’s preposterous. I would never lie to our parents. Especially not over something as trivial as the vision that I had while I was asleep,” Lisa firmly denied.

“So did you have a dream last night or not?” Lucy insisted.

“Definitely not,” Lisa denied again.

“Don't play games with me Lisa,” Lucy said in an ice cold tone.

The intellectual four year old decided that she could no longer keep her secret. Feeling defeated, she sighed.

“Ok, I'll tell you. But can we please not do it here? I don't want the others to hear us,” Lisa mumbled in a nervous tone.

“I know the perfect place. Follow me,” Lucy stated.

The two sisters exit Lisa's room and walk down the hall until they reach the cord that opens the hatch to the attic. Lucy pulls the cord and the hatch opens, revealing the stairs. They climb the stairs into the attic. Lucy leads Lisa to the back corner of the attic as far away from the hatch as humanly possible. They find a spot in between the back wall and a tall stack of boxes. Lucy moves the boxes around so that they form a barrier that allows the girls to hide behind them.

“Ok, I'm certain they won't hear us. Now what was your dream?” Lucy wonders. Lisa describes her dream.

“(Sigh) My dream was about Clyde. What happened was that I was sitting on the couch doing math problems when someone knocks on the door. It was Clyde and I asked him what we wanted. He said he came to see me…” Lisa explained. Lucy cuts her off before she could finish.

“Wait a minute. Clyde, as in Lincoln's best friend, wanted to see you?” Lucy asks in surprise.

“Yes. So then he sat on the couch and told me to sit next to him. So I did. Then he took my hand like this,” Lisa says. She grabs Lucy's hand with both of hers, just like Clyde had done.

“Then what happened?” Lucy wonders, releasing her hand from Lisa's grasp.

“Nothing. Lincoln woke me up before anything else could happen,” Lisa explained.

“How did your dream make you feel?” Lucy asks.

Lisa gives Lucy a funny look.

“What do you mean how did it make me feel?” Lisa wonders.

“It's not a trick question,” Lucy replied.

“(Sigh). While those mental images of Clyde plagued my mind, I felt an unusual sensation. My circulatory organ started to contain moderate heat at the introspection of Clyde paying heed to my existence,” Lisa explained.

Lucy was silent, clearly confused by her little sister's complicated wording that sounded like mumbo-jumbo.

“The thought of Clyde giving me attention made me feel warm inside. Specifically in my heart,” Lisa simplified.

Before either girl could say another word, Mr. Loud poked his head into the attic.

“Lucy, Lisa. What are you girls doing?” Mr. Loud questioned in a slightly suspicious tone.

They didn't want to tell him that they were talking because they don't want him to ask any questions. Lucy jumps in.

“We were looking for something,” Lucy answered.

“Well come on down. We gotta get going,” Mr. Loud states.

“Where are we going?” Lisa questions.

“We're all going to the movies with the McBrides. Now let's go,” Mr. Loud urged.

As soon as he walked away, Lucy turned to Lisa.

“Are you gonna be Ok? You know, because Clyde's gonna be there?” Lucy questions.

“Of course I am. Just because I had one dream where I interact with Clyde on a somewhat personal level, it does not affect my feelings towards him in real life. Besides, he’ll probably fawn over Lori the whole time anyway,” Lisa scoffed.

“Lucy! Lisa! Let's go, we're gonna miss the movie!” Mrs. Loud shouts from downstairs.

The two girls exit the attic. As they walk down the stairs to the front door, Lisa gives Lucy a look that says “remember, not a word” and Lucy nods.


	4. At the Movies

The Louds, excluding Lori and Lily with the latter being too young to go to the movies and the former staying behind to babysit her, head off to the theater.

“What are we going to see?” Lynn asks.

“We're going to see Brave Brave Knight Saves the Day,” Mr. Loud answers.

“Yay! I've always wanted to see that movie ever since I saw the commercial on TV,” Lola squeals.

“Ugh, that movie sounds sooo boring,” Lana complained.

“I know it might sound boring, but this whole thing was the McBrides’ idea. So we're gonna be polite and on our best behavior,” Mrs. Loud instructs.  
Once the Louds arrive at the movie theater and acquire snacks and drinks, they are greeted by the McBrides.

“Hi Lincoln,” Clyde greets.

“Hey man. Thanks a lot for inviting us,” Lincoln says gratefully.

“No problem,” Clyde looks at the Loud sisters and notices Lori's missing.

“Uh, where's Lori?” Clyde wonders.

“She stayed at home to babysit Lily,” Lincoln explains.

“Oh that's too bad,” Clyde mumbles while hanging his head.

“Cheer up Clyde. Let's just go and enjoy the movie,” Lincoln puts his hand on Clyde's shoulder as the two of them lead everybody inside the theater.

Everybody decides to sit in the upper part of the theater so they can see the screen better. The parents and the twins sit in the far back row. Mr. Loud sits in the aisle seat, then it's Mrs. Loud, Lola, Lana, Howard, and Harold. Three rows in front of them sit Luna in the aisle seat, Leni, and Lynn. Two rows in front of them have just Lucy and Lisa, with the former sitting next to the aisle. Lincoln (next to the aisle), Clyde, and Luan occupy the row that's right in front of Lucy and Lisa. The lights in the theater mildly dim as the previews start playing.

“What do you think this movie's gonna be like?” Lisa whispers to Lucy.

“Based on the trailers, probably some generic romance fairy tale,” Lucy responds in a completely disinterested tone.

After the previews end, the anti-cell spot plays.

“Welcome to the Royal Woods Cinema. Please silence all cell phones and refrain from loud talking and disruptive behavior. Thank you for choosing Royal Woods Cinema and enjoy your feature presentation.”  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Even though the movie essentially was a generic romance, something about it strangely drew Lisa to it. Was it the plot? No, not really. It really wasn't anything special. Was it the characters? Sure, they were compelling at times but nothing spectacular. So what was it about “Brave Brave Knight Saves the Day” that made Lisa really really like it?

As the film reached the halfway point, that's when it hit her. Not only was Lisa reminded of the dream that she had last night, but she also started to imagine herself as the princess and Clyde as the knight in shining armor.

There was a point in the film where the protagonists, in separate locations, sing a song that expresses their desire to be with each other. Lisa needs to step out of the room for a little bit, so she turns to Lucy.

“I have to go to the bathroom,” Lisa whispers in Lucy's ear.

“Want me to come with you?” Lucy whispers back.

“No that's Ok. I'll just be right back,” Lisa says.

She gives the popcorn to Lucy and gets up from her seat. After she exits the theater, Lisa walks down the hall to the women's restroom. She stands in front of the mirror and removes her glasses. She rapidly splashes her face with water and proceeds to yell at herself.

“Control yourself, woman!” Lisa yells in a condescending tone.

Lucky for her, there's no one in the bathroom except her. She puts her glasses back on her face.

“These feelings mean nothing! Clyde does not, nor will he ever have your heart! This is all in your head! You hear me? All in your head!” Lisa scolds herself harshly.

After giving herself a less than stellar talking-to, she leaves the bathroom and goes back to the theater. Before she could walk back to her seat, she glances at Clyde, who's eating his popcorn while looking at the screen. She gives a deep breath and goes back to her seat.  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Several minutes later, the film ends and the credits start to roll. The lights in the room start to brighten. 

“Ok kids, it’s time to go,” Mrs. Loud announced.

Everybody gets up from their seat and heads out the door. As the Louds thank the McBrides, Lisa sneaks away and heads for the exit. As she walks away, she gets spotted by Luna.

“Hey, Lis. What's the rush?” Luna wonders.

Before turning around to face her big sister, Lisa nervously tried to come up with a lie as to why she had to rush out of the theater. The old “I'm tired” trick should work. Lisa turns toward Luna and fakes a yawn.

“I'm tired Luna. I want to go home,” Lisa lied.

Luna cocked an eyebrow while looking at a nearby clock on the wall.

“What are you talking about? It's only 7:30,” Luna says.

“Luna, it's perfectly normal for a child my age to be tired at this time. Besides, I need sleep for my growing body,” Lisa stated matter-of-factly.

“Ok then. At least let me walk you to the car,” Luna says. Lisa and Luna walk to the exit and everyone else soon followed.

During the car ride home, Lisa stared at the window trying hard to erase Clyde from her mind. When the car finally pulled up in the Loud driveway, Lisa was the first one out and the first one to walk into the house.

“What's her deal?” Lincoln asks Luna, who's sitting next to him.

“She said she was tired,” Luna shrugged.

The four year old rushed to her room. Lily was already sleeping, so she had to be very quiet. Lisa put on her green pajamas and got in bed. However, instead of going to sleep, she just layed there.


	5. Lincoln Finds Out

The next day at 1:36 pm, Lucy was sitting on her bed in her room trying to write a poem. Lynn was out, so she was alone. There was a frantic knock on the door, so Lucy got up to answer it. Lisa rushed into the room so fast that Lucy barely had time to react.

“Lisa? Are you Ok?” Lucy asks.

“No Lucy. I'm not Ok. I had another dream about Clyde last night,” Lisa explains in a somewhat panicked tone.

Lucy was going to say something, but couldn't because Lisa kept talking.

“And you know that jewelry making kit we got Lola for her birthday?” Lisa says. Lucy nods.

“Well I made this,” Lisa pulls the sleeve of her green sweater to reveal a small bracelet that had beads with letters that spell Clyde's name.

“I don't entirely understand why you seem so upset,” Lucy replies “this was only the second dream you had about Clyde.”

Lisa looks down guiltily.

“Actually no it isn't. This is actually the fourth dream I had about Clyde,” Lisa confessed. Lucy's jaw dropped.

“Why didn't you tell me before?” Lucy questions.

“Because I was too embarrassed. The first dream I had occurred a couple of weeks ago. It involved the two of us having a picnic in the park. Then the second dream occurred last Tuesday. In that dream, Clyde rescued me from a burning building. I already told you about the third dream. And last night's dream was just like that movie we saw, but with Clyde and I in the main roles,” Lisa explained.

Both sisters stay silent so they can ponder the fact that Lisa had four dreams about Clyde.

“I…don’t know what you'll think of this, but...I think you have a crush on Clyde,” Lucy finally says.

At first, Lisa narrows her eyes as if to say “that's ridiculous” but then she thinks about all the dreams she had. Then she looks at her bracelet that she made herself. She realizes that Lucy is right.

“(Gasp) You're right!” Lisa shouts in shock.  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Meanwhile, Lincoln exits the bathroom and makes his way towards his own room. However, he hears voices coming from Lucy and Lynn's room, so he decides to eavesdrop. He puts his ear close to the door.

“Maybe we should ask Lincoln what he thinks,” Lucy suggests.

“No! This is a situation that Lincoln knows nothing about!” Lisa objected.

“But Lincoln is Clyde's best friend. He knows him better than we do. If anyone can help you with this, it's Linc,” Lucy argues.

“He's just gonna make fun of me,” Lisa sighs in a defeated tone.

Lincoln is curious as to what they are talking about, so he walks into the room.

“Hey guys, what are you talking about?” Lincoln greets.

Lisa looks at Lucy to which the young goth nodded her head. Lisa gives Lincoln one glance before looking away in shame.

“It's Ok, Lisa. I'm your big brother. You can tell me anything,” Lincoln whispered in a comforting tone while giving a reassuring smile. Lisa looks up at her brother.

“Can you please make sure there's no one around?” Lisa asks her brother.

Lincoln ducks his head outside the room and looks around. There's no one in the halls, so he turns back to Lisa.

“Coast is clear,” Lincoln states.

“Now shut the door Linc,” Lisa instructs.

Lincoln does what he's told and then sits next to Lucy on her bed.

“Alright, lay it on me,” Lincoln insists.

“I think I have a crush on your friend Clyde,” Lisa confessed.

Lincoln looked at her with a starstruck expression.

“So, what happened was that I started having dreams involving Clyde. And that movie we saw last night, Brave Brave Knight Saves the Day, gave me another dream. My fourth dream to be exact. Every time I think about Clyde, I feel this warmth inside. Right in here,” Lisa places her hand on her heart. She walks up to Lincoln and shows him her bracelet.

“And then there's this,” Lisa says.

Lincoln continues to silently stare at Lisa as she explains everything, his expression getting more and more shocked. Lisa and Lucy look at their shell-shocked brother.

“Somebody say something,” Lucy pried.

“Um...Clyde is...coming over today,” Lincoln says.

“Oh. He...he is?” Lisa responds.

Lincoln blinks to snap himself out of his daze.

“You've gotta tell him Lisa,” Lincoln insisted.

A red streak spreads across Lisa's face.

“I don't think I can face him,” Lisa whispers.

Before anybody can say anything else, there's a knock on the front door.

“That's Clyde,” Lincoln says.


	6. Arranging a Date

Before going downstairs to answer the door, Lincoln looks at Lisa.

“Should I tell him or do you want to?” Lincoln asks.

“No Lincoln. You don't tell him anything. Keep your mouth shut,” Lisa says sternly.

With a sigh, Lincoln leaves Lucy's room and goes downstairs. He opens the door and gets greeted by Clyde.

“Hi Lincoln,” Clyde greets happily.

“Hey,” Lincoln replies in a less than enthusiastic tone. Clyde takes note of this and his smile disappears.

“Something wrong?” Clyde wonders.

“Uh, no. No, everything's fine. Come in,” Lincoln grabs Clyde by the shoulder and leads him into the house, closing the door behind him.

The two boys make their way to the couch, grab two video game controllers, and proceed to play a video game.  
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Meanwhile, upstairs, Luna comes into Lucy's room. 

“Hey, can you guys come into Lori's room? We're having a meeting,” Luna instructs.

“Shouldn't we get Lincoln?” Lisa says.

“Nah, it's girls only. You too Lucy,” Luna walks towards Lori and Leni's room with Lisa and Lucy following behind.

When they enter the room, they see the rest of the Loud sisters giving Lisa smug looks.

“Lisa,” Lori says in a sultry voice, “we know about your little Clyde situation.”

Lisa gives a loud gasp of betrayal and then angrily glares at Lucy. The young goth raises her hands defensively.

“I didn't tell them anything, I swear,” Lucy panics, still deadpan. 

Keeping an angry expression, she turns away from Lucy and looks at the rest of her sisters.

“Let's just say a little birdie told us,” Lynn says.

“A little birdie? You mean Walt? But he can't talk,” Leni comments.

“No Leni,” Lori mutters while rolling her eyes.

“The little birdie was me,” Lola announces in smug satisfaction. Of course, Lola. Nobody's secret was safe from her.

Lisa's expression changes from angry to nervous, as if waiting for judgement and ridicule.

“After Lola told us about you your new liking for Clyde, we decided that there was only one way to settle this,” Lori explains. 

Lisa looks around the room and sees that all of her sisters are starting to get these huge grins on their faces. Luan, Lola, and Luna also start moving their eyebrows up and down suggestively. Lisa looks at Lori and Leni, who exchange glances and nod.

“You and Clyde should go on a date!” Everyone except Lily says.

Lucy's jaw drops and she looks at Lisa. Lisa doesn't say a single word. In fact, she barely even moves. She just stands there staring awkwardly into space. She can hear her heart pounding in her ears and her cheeks start to feel warm. Leni walks over to her.

“Lisa? Are you Ok?” Leni asks with concern.

“W-what if...what if he...s...what if he...s-says…s-says…” Lisa is so terrified of the outcome of asking Clyde out on a date that she can barely form real words.

“What if he says what?” Lana questions, getting impatient by Lisa's stammering.

“What if he says no?” Lisa finally says.

Everybody looks at each other with worried expressions.

“Oh boy. I think we're gonna need Linc’s help,” Lori whispers in a defeated tone.

“Say no more. I'll go get him,” Lucy walks out of the room.

She goes downstairs and stands in front of the TV.

“Lincoln, can you come upstairs?” Lucy insists. Lincoln and Clyde both look up at her.

“I have company,” Lincoln protests.

“It's important. Lisa needs you,” Lucy explains.

Lincoln pauses the game and immediately puts down his controller.

“Is Lisa gonna perform an experiment on you?” Clyde jokes.

“No, it's a more personal matter,” Lincoln says as he and Lucy head upstairs.

Clyde simply shrugs.  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Once Lucy and Lincoln enter Lori's room, everybody stares at him.

“Hey guys, what's going on?” Lincoln questions.

“Ok, here's the thing, we got to talking and we think that the only way to solve Lisa's feeling for Clyde is to have the two of them go on a date,” Luna explains. Lincoln frowns in confusion.

“So shoot straight with us, Linc. Would Clyde say no to a date with Lisa?” Lori inquires.

Lincoln glances at Lisa who gives him a pleading look.

“This is a tough one. Well for one thing, he might feel a little confused about what to talk about since Lisa's so much smarter than him,” Lincoln begins. He thinks really hard for a second. 

“But on the other hand, it's possible that since someone actually likes him, he'll find it hard to refuse,” Lincoln states. Lisa gives her brother a look of hope.

“There's only one way to find out,” Lincoln says.  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
He goes out the door and Lucy follows. They both go downstairs and face Clyde.

“Oh you're back,” Clyde says.

Since they are about to ask him a serious question, Lucy turns off the video game console and the TV. Clyde looks at what Lucy has done, but doesn't say anything.

“Clyde. In all seriousness, what would you say if I told you that one of my younger sisters has a crush on you?” Lincoln asks in a completely serious tone.

Clyde raises his eyebrows in surprise.

“One of your younger sisters? Um...that depends on who it is,” Clyde replies.

“It's Lisa,” Lucy answers.

Clyde's eyes and mouth widen in shock.

“L-Lisa? As in your super smart sister who has a PhD even though she's only four?” Clyde stuttered. Lincoln and Lucy both nod.

“How? Why? When?” Clyde stammered.

“Over the course of a couple weeks, she's been having dreams about you. Including last night when her dream was reminiscent of that movie we saw,” Lucy explained.

Clyde put his hand on his cheek and nervously bites his bottom lip.

“My sisters think that the best solution for this is to have the two of you go on a date,” Lincoln recited.

With his face flushing bright red, Clyde takes his hand and smacks the side of his head. He could not imagine having his very first date with Lisa of all people. He wanted his first date to either be with Lori or with a girl his own age, not a four year old girl genius. However, he started to remember a piece of advice that his dads gave him: if someone genuinely likes you and wants to spend time with you, you should take it. After a few seconds of silence, Clyde gets up from the couch.

“Lincoln, I would love to date your little sister Lisa!” Clyde declared.

His announcement enlisted a small grin from Lucy and a proud smile from Lincoln.


	7. Preparations

Several minutes later, the door to Lori's room opens and everybody looks at Lincoln and Lucy eagerly. Lucy still has a grin on her face, which gives everybody a sense of hope.

“He said yes!” Lincoln cheers.

All the sisters start squealing and jumping up and down just like in the episode “Heavy Meddle”. However, the only one who has no reaction is Lisa. Instead she gives a starstruck expression. After the squealing dies down, everybody looks at Lisa.

“He really said yes?” Lisa whispers in surprise.

“Yep. He says that since this is the first date for the both of you, he wants to have dinner at his place. In his words, he says that having a date at home will be less awkward than in a public place,” Lincoln explains.

Everybody gasps and simultaneously says “awww!”

“That's so romantic,” Leni comments.

“I'm jealous,” Lola sighs.

With her eyelids drooping and cheeks turning bright red, Lisa places her hand in front of her mouth and softly giggles.

“I can tell you're excited,” Lincoln states while giving a warm smile.

Lisa continued to giggle while covering her mouth. She finally stops and clears her throat.

“Well come on Lis, we gotta get you ready,” Leni squeals while clapping her hands.

“What's wrong with what I'm wearing now?” Lisa questions while looking down at her clothes.

Lori smiles while shaking her head.

“Lisa, Lisa, Lisa. This is a date, a special occasion. You can't wear something Clyde sees you in all the time. You literally gotta dress up and make yourself look pretty,” Lori noted.

Since she was the only one with a steady boyfriend, Lori was more or less the resident dating expert.

“I don't even know if I have fancy attire,” Lisa states.

“Lisa, there's no such thing as fancy tires. Or maybe limos have them,” Leni blurts out.

“No Leni. Attire means clothes,” Lucy explains.

“Don't worry Lisa. Even if you don't have anything fancy, we can fix something up for you,” Lori reassures. Lisa gives a humble grin.  
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
A couple hours later, all the Louds except for Lisa are sitting on the couch and patiently waiting for Lisa to come downstairs. She was upstairs changing into the specially made shirt and skirt that Leni had sewn for her.

“I never thought it would take so long for Lisa to get ready,” Lincoln comments.

“Hey, she's going on a date. She has to look good,” Lola stated matter-of-factly, “and it's about time for Lisa to look decent.”

Lana punches her twin in the arm, enlisting a small “ow” from the pageant princess.

“Ok, I'm coming down,” Lisa calls from upstairs. Everybody eagerly looks up as Lisa comes downstairs.

She's wearing a lime green short sleeved shirt, a dark green skirt, and black dress shoes. Everybody's pupils widen at the sight of the second youngest Loud looking so dressed up.

“Well?” Lisa says.

“You look good,” Lynn compliments. Luan, Luna, and Lana nod in agreement.

“There's something missing though,” Lola states as she puts her index finger on her chin.

“I've got it,” Leni says.

She holds out a small green hair tie with a green bow on it and walks towards Lisa. Leni ties the bow in the part of Lisa's hair that sticks up in the back.

“Perfect,” Leni squeals.

After the bow is put in her hair, the Loud sisters start simultaneously screaming “awwwww!” Lincoln stares at Lisa and starts to get teary-eyed. Lisa walks to the front door and opens it.

“Where are you going?” Lincoln says.

“Where do you think? I’m going to Clyde’s,” Lisa states.

“But it’s getting dark out. You can’t go by yourself,” Lincoln protested.

“I’m sorry, but I have to do this alone,” Lisa declared while holding her arm out. She leaves and closes the door behind her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: I know this chapter may seem very short, but there’s a reason. I was originally going to put Lisa and Clyde’s date at the end of this chapter, but I ultimately decided to devote a whole chapter to it so that it doesn’t seem rushed).


	8. Dinner at Clyde's (Plus Epilogue)

Meanwhile, at the McBride house, Clyde puts the finishing touches on the dining table setting. He is dressed in a white tuxedo with black pants and black dress shoes, exactly like what he wore in the episode “Get the Message”.

“And now, for my guest,” Clyde whispers.

There’s a knock on the door, so Clyde goes to answer it. When he sees Lisa standing there, he is blown away by what he sees. He’s not used to seeing Lisa wearing a skirt and a bow in her hair. She looked...cute. Adorable even. He couldn’t believe how cute she looked.

“Greetings. May I come in?” Lisa intervenes.

“Oh yes. Yes, come in,” Clyde snapped out of his daze and gestured for Lisa to enter his house.

After he closes the door, Clyde walks to the dining room and Lisa follows. He looks wonderful in a tuxedo, Lisa thinks to herself. She gives a small grin and she starts to blush.

When the two reach the dining table, Clyde pulls a chair out for Lisa. The four year old curtsies and sits down. Since girls curtsying is a weakness for Clyde, he starts blushing as he sits down across from his guest. They each have a plate of spaghetti and salad in front of them. Now it’s time to have a conversation.

“You...you look very pretty this evening,” Clyde comments politely. Lisa gives a shy smirk as she places her hand on the bow in her hair.

“Thank you Clyde. And I must say, you look very enticing yourself,” Lisa compliments as she adjusts her glasses. Clyde dignifies Lisa’s compliment by shyly rubbing his neck and grinning.

“So...you had dreams about me?” Clyde commented.

“Yes I have. Four dreams actually,” Lisa noted.

“Four, I’m impressed. I’m curious about what they were,” Clyde wondered. 

“Of course. The first dream I had involved the two of us...having a picnic in the park,” Lisa explained.

“A picnic in the park? Excellent.”

“The next dream...you rescued me from a burning building.”

“I rescued you from a burning building?!” Clyde gasped.

“Yes. The only concrete thing I remember was you ran inside and...carried me out,” Lisa whispers. She starts to eat some of her salad.  
“You mean like the fireman carry?” Clyde wonders.

After swallowing her food, Lisa grabs a napkin and wipes her mouth. Her cheeks turn red.

“Actually more like the bridal carry,” Lisa clarifies in a nervous tone.

Clyde’s mouth forms a small circle as he tries to picture himself carrying Lisa.

“Ok then. What was your third dream?” Clyde wonders.

“My third dream was honestly nothing special. You just came over to my house and you said you wanted to see me. Then you grabbed my hand like this.”

Without thinking, she reaches across the table and grabs Clyde’s hand in both of hers. It was such a weird sensation to have a girl holding his hand like this. A nice sensation, but weird nonetheless. She releases her hands from Clyde’s.

“Oh. I’m, I’m really sorry,” Lisa apologizes awkwardly as she releases her grasp from Clyde’s hand.

“There’s no need to apologize sweetheart...oh gosh, I mean Lisa,” Clyde’s cheeks flush bright red and he starts to devour his spaghetti to cover the fact that he called Lisa “sweetheart” totally unintentionally.

Lisa couldn’t help but drop her jaw. He really called me sweetheart. I can’t believe it. I’ve always wanted to be called that, Lisa squeals in her mind.

The two of them spend the next few minutes eating dinner while thinking about what else to talk about. They eventually face each other again.

“Clyde, I need to tell you something,” Lisa stated.

“What is it?” Clyde questions in a curious tone.

“Actually, you know what, never mind,” Lisa stammers as she looked down in what seemed to be either sadness or shame.

Clyde looked at the four year old with concern and noticed her right hand resting on the table. He reaches over and places his own right hand on top of Lisa’s.

“It’s alright, Lisa,” Clyde began. Lisa looks at his hand and then looks up so that their eyes meet. “We are here together now. Whatever it is you want to tell me, I’ll understand,” Clyde confided in a reassuring tone.

Lisa takes a deep breath before speaking. “I wanted to say...I know that you still have feelings for Lori…” Lisa’s eyes start to fill with tears, but her large glasses covered them up, so she prayed that she wouldn’t crying in front of Clyde.

Clyde kept his eyes on Lisa, listening intently to whatever she had to tell him.

“And...and I know that you wish...that she was here...instead of me,” One tear leaves each of Lisa’s eyes and they softly trickle down her cheeks.

Clyde immediately takes notice of the tears and starts to feel even more concerned. Since his hand was still on Lisa’s hand, he softly squeezes it as a way of comforting her. Lisa uses her left hand to push her glasses up towards her forehead and wipe the tears from her eyes.

“I...I’m really sorry. I feel like such a fool…” Lisa whispers.

Clyde softly pets Lisa’s hand. “No Lisa, you’re not a fool. Everybody cries. You...you don’t have to keep talking if you don’t want to,” Clyde mutters softly.

“No, Clyde. I have to say my peace. Just...let me get this off my chest,” Lisa pleads.

“Very well, carry on,” Clyde says.

“I was going to tell you that even though we are on a date right now, in this moment, and even though I have pretty affectionate feelings towards you, I...I don’t…” Lisa starts to cry even more to the point that her speech is altered by soft sobs and her eyes and nose also start to become red and puffy.

Clyde’s lips start to slowly quiver as he sees the little girl in front of him being so vulnerable and trying to pour her heart out to him. Clyde opens his mouth to say something, but Lisa holds her left hand up to stop him from speaking. She removes her glasses from her face and uses a napkin to wipe her tears and blow her nose. After she’s sure that she has gotten her cries out of her system, she puts her glasses back on her face.

“Do you know the definition of obligated?” Lisa asks, looking Clyde in the eyes. That was a very odd question, but he dare not question her after seeing her crying as much as she did, so he nodded.

“I was gonna say that you don’t have to feel obligated to return my affections. If you don’t like me in the same way that I like you, that’s Ok,” Lisa says, finally choking out the speech she’s been wanting to give all night.

Clyde gives Lisa a strange look that was a combination of pity and disbelief. She says that it’s Ok if I didn’t like her back, but considering how much she was crying, it’s clearly not.

This is quite a tense situation that both children are in. Lisa just poured her heart out and bawled like a baby to someone who wasn’t even her family, especially during an occasion that was supposed to be happy. Clyde saw a side of Lisa’s that he never thought he would see, and he’s especially conflicted over how he should feel. Even though he still feels affection towards Lori and has for a long time, his heart started to swell at the notion of Lisa being so caring of him. 

Clyde looks at Lisa and sees that her eyes are very glossy from crying. Finally, he can’t take it anymore. He gets up from his chair and walks to Lisa. He gets down on one knee so that he is eye level with Lisa. After she faces him, Clyde grabs both of Lisa’s hands into his.

“Lisa Loud, I want you to know that I’m sorry if my liking for Lori made you feel sad or inferior in any way. The heart is a pretty tricky thing. So much so that I’m not sure if I’ll ever feel the same way about you as you do for me,” Clyde explains in a soft tone.

Lisa doesn’t say anything but instead closes her eyes as another tear slowly trickles down her cheek. Clyde uses his thumb and index finger to raise Lisa’s head up slightly.

“But that does not mean that I don’t care about you. On the contrary, after tonight, I’ve grown to really care about you. I’m not romantically inclined towards you, by any means, but I now think of you as a friend, a companion, and maybe even a confidante,” Clyde spoke in a sweet and comforting tone. 

Lisa sniffled and wiped her tears while giving a tiny grin. “Really?” Lisa responds.

“Yes...sweetheart,” Clyde whispers as he places his right hand on Lisa’s right cheek.  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Epilogue

Several minutes later, they realize what time it is.

“Well...I-I’d better get home,” Lisa says.

“Yes. Here, let me walk you home,” Clyde instructed.

He held his hand out and smiled warmly at Lisa, indicating that he wants to hold her hand. Lisa’s heart becomes overjoyed as she grabs Clyde’s hand. The two of them hold hands as they exit the McBride house and walk down the dark sidewalk towards the Loud house.

“Thank you so much for this date Clyde. I really appreciated this time with you,” Lisa praised.

“You’re welcome Lisa. It was the least I could do since you like me,” Clyde replied while smiling.

Without any hesitation or even second thought, Lisa layed her head on Clyde’s arm and snuggled it. Clyde couldn’t help but smile and blush at this.  
“Ok, we’re here,” Clyde finally says. Lisa removes her head from Clyde’s arm and looks at her house.

Most of the lights were turned off with the exception of the light coming from the linen closet, a.k.a Lincoln’s room, which meant that Lincoln was waiting up for his little sister. Clyde kneels down on both knees so that he’s once again eye level with Lisa so they can properly say goodbye.

“Well this is it. Goodbye Lisa,” Clyde says.

Lisa gives a smile of gratitude and leaps towards Clyde, wrapping him in a big hug. Feeling touched by Lisa’s hug, he returns it and places his hand on the back of Lisa’s head.

“Goodbye Clyde. I’ll see you around,” Lisa says.

She removes herself from Clyde’s grasp and walks towards her front door. The two of them give each other one final farewell wave before Lisa enters her house and Clyde walks home.

Lisa silently and carefully trudged up the stairs so as not to wake everybody else up. Just as she opened the door to her room and was about to go inside, she gets stopped by Lincoln who opens his own door and looks at her.

“You’re home late. How was it?” Lincoln asks. Lisa turns towards her brother and smiles lovingly.

“It was so wonderful,” Lisa sighs in content.

“Well that’s good. Think you’ll do it again?” Lincoln wonders. Lisa simply shrugs.

“We’d better get to bed. Goodnight Lisa,” Lincoln says.

“Goodnight Lincoln,” Lisa replies.

After Lincoln closes the door and turns off his light, Lisa goes into her room and shuts the door. She takes off her clothes but ultimately decides not to put on her pajamas, so instead she just sleeps in her underwear and socks. After getting into bed, she removes her glasses and gingerly places them on the nightstand next to her bed. Would Clyde and I do it again? Oh I sure hope so. She closes her eyes and drifts off to sleep.


End file.
